What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?
by aliceyak
Summary: [The Grinch 2018; Grinch/Donna-Lou] [Will move fic if it's in the wrong section] Only a few days after the events of The Grinch stealing Christmas, Cindy Lou notices the potential of something very interesting between her mother and Mr. Grinch after Donna invites him to a New Year's Eve party.
1. Chapter 1

~Dec. 29~

It was only a few days after Christmas, but rather than feeling disappointed that the merriment was over like most children, young Cindy Lou could not have been more pleased.

True, her mother was returning to work after taking the holiday off, and the three days in between would normally have been spent tidying up the house, taking down the decorations, and caring for Cindy Lou and her two brothers. But not this year.

This year, her mother Donna Lou Who was able to play in the snow with her, catch up on some reading while sitting before a warm fire sipping hot cider, and mostly just relaxing and unwinding from all the Christmas rushing about. It was all Cindy Lou could have ever dreamt of. She had made a special Christmas wish that her mother would get a break from all she did for them, that she might have some help with the load.

Now instead of stressing about work and money and children and her other adult problems, Cindy Lou had seen her take a nap. A NAP. In the middle of the day.

Cindy Lou was happy to help out where she could, but being still young herself, she knew she couldn't manage it all on her own. No, the real saving grace - the embodiment of her Christmas wish - had come in a much greener package.

After being invited to dinner at their house, the Grinch had sought a way of paying back the family's kind gesture. This was what he told her as he had returned the next day, and the day after that, and the following day as well. Each time taking it upon himself to take over doing whatever it was Donna Lou had to do that day.

On the twenty-sixth, he took down all the decorations and did all of the dishes from the night before. On the twenty-seventh, he took the tree and all the extra Christmas trash to the dump and shoveled the walkway outside. Then on the twenty-eighth, he watched the twins so that Cindy Lou and Donna Lou could go have a girls' day. Each time coming all the way down from Mt. Crumpit and staying nearly all day before making the journey back up again.

Today he was watching the three of them as their mother returned to the world from their happy holiday bubble. Leaving Cindy Lou and the Grinch, plus two.

There wasn't much to do while the twins were napping, so the two of them spent the day playing Whoopoly, fixing the broken washing machine, and tinkering with a new surprise for her mom to be unveiled that night.

It wasn't as easy when the boys were awake, though. The Grinch not having had much experience with infants was sufficiently awkward at changing and feeding them. He got the hang of it slowly, as Cindy Lou walked him through it. Finally, they were able to get Buster and Bean fed, bathed, and changed before tucking them in for the night.

Right around nine forty-five, the two could hear the jingling of keys that was the tell-tale sign of her mother's return. It woke Max from his comfy spot before the fire and he rushed to greet her as Donna Lou came in the door.

Cindy Lou had been curled up next to the Grinch on the couch pretending to be asleep, but she shot straight up as swiftly as Max had when she heard Donna Lou enter and clamored down to greet her mother as well.

"Mommy!" Cindy Lou started to shout, her volume lowering several notches as she remembered her sleeping brothers upstairs.

"Well, this certainly is a greeting," her mother said as she returned the hug from her daughter and gently fended off Max's affections.

"Max, no. Stop that," the Grinch tried to reprimand the dog as Max was leaping as high as Donna Lou's waist and trying to lick every inch of her he could reach.

Donna Lou only giggled, "It's fine, really. I'm just not used to such a warm homecoming." Her eyes strayed from her daughter to the clock above them. "Especially this late, you should already be in bed young lady."

Cindy Lou tilted her gaze to the floor, only feeling slightly guilty that she'd been allowed to stay up past her bedtime.

Grinch - who had finally grabbed Max's collar and was attempting to get the pooch to calm down - spoke up at this.

"Uh, you see, that was my fault. She begged me to let her stay up to wait for you."

Donna Lou crossed her arms and 'hmmed', but with no real agitation present.

"I guess if he's going to be such a pushover, we may have to stop asking Mr. Grinch to sit for us."

Cindy Lou moaned a "No" as loudly as she dared, and she grabbed hold of her mother's legs, puppy face at the ready.

"You can't, Mom! He's so much fun."

Donna Lou chuckled again and stroked Cindy Lou's head.

"More fun than Mrs. Wilbur?"

Cindy Lou nodded emphatically. "Yeah, and he never leaves a mess or a clogged up sink, either."

Donna Lou smiled down at her, then gave her a kiss on top of her head. "I agree, that is a plus. Now why don't you go on up to bed? I'll be up to check on you in a bit."

"But what about the surprise?" she asked, pigtails whipping as she turned to the Grinch.

"Oh, there's a surprise?" asked her mother.

"Yeah, it's out back, and we were supposed to show you together," Cindy Lou chirped.

"Well, if it's alright with you, I think Mr. Grinch is capable of showing me by himself," Donna answered,in a pointed though not forceful manner.

Cindy Lou scrunched up her face, debating, then she relented with a sigh.

"Oookay, but just remember that I helped with it too."

"I will definitely keep that in mind."

Cindy Lou made no more fuss about heading up to bed, mostly because she had no intention of actually going up to her room yet. There was no way she was missing her mom's reaction when she saw what they'd built. She gave her mom one last hug, and then one to a surprised looking Grinch. Then Cindy Lou disappeared from her mother's sight, although she stayed at the top of the landing to hear the adults talk.

"That is one good kid you have there," she heard Him say as Cindy Lou disappeared around the corner of the hallway.

"Don't I know it," her mother agreed with a soft laugh.

"-Not that your sons aren't great as well. I don't want to imply that she's better or that-"

"It's okay," Donna Lou said. "I get what you mean. And the boys can be a handful. Or two, rather."

There was silence between them as Cindy Lou heard keys and purse being placed on the kitchen table.

"Thanks so much again, Mr. Grinch," her mother said as she scooted a chair closer to the table. "I've gotten lucky my next few shifts are within reasonable hours. But who's to say they won't put me right back on night shift whenever they get the chance?"

Cindy Lou could hear the weariness in her mother's voice, and she crept carefully around the corner to get a better view.

Her mother swept some stray hair out of her face as Cindy Lou watched her approach the Grinch.

"You've done so much for us these past few days – and I am so very grateful - but I can't expect you to keep it up forever. I don't want our troubles to interfere with your life. "

It was hard at this angle to see the Grinch's expression, but Cindy Lou could see the soft smile on her mother's face.

The Grinch seemed to have an itch on the back of his head. "That's assuming I've had much of a life to interfere with." He chuckled, somewhat awkwardly.

"But really, none of this is any trouble, Ms. Who. It's the least I can do for your family since your daughter helped me so. And - in any case - if I'm going to be dipping my toe back into Who society, I'd be more comfortable starting with you."

There was a pause, and Cindy Lou could feel the air growing even more awkward, if that was possible.

"'You' meaning your family, that is. Not just you, yourself."

She could see her mother nod. "I- got that. And you know you don't have to call me 'Ms. Who'. It's Donna Lou, or- just Donna."

"Right, Donna." He seemed to test out the sound of the name. It sounded odd to Cindy Lou's ears coming from his lips, but it did cause her mother's smile to widen.

He took a bit too long to come back with, "And of course, you can just call me 'Grinch'." More silence. There sure was a lot of awkwardness emanating from that kitchen. She didn't think this was a typical level either. It was interesting, but Cindy Lou thought after a while that maybe they really had finished talking and was contemplating going to bed when she heard her mother speak up.

"So, there was a surprise?" Donna brought up with an air of hesitation.

"Yes, but it's- not that important. It can wait until morning if you're tired."

"Are you kidding?" she said playfully, but then corrected. "I mean, I don't want to sound greedy, but knowing that whatever it is needs to be outside has me curious."

They headed out the back door and Cindy Lou followed, taking great care to stay in the shadows and out of sight.  
She watched them crunch through the snow as she tried not to fog up the window and leave a mark. The door was closed behind them, so Cindy Lou very carefully opened the window a crack to try and hear from the safety and warmth of the inside.

It was harder to make out what they were saying, but from her vantage point Cindy Lou could get a great view of her mother's face. She – of course – knew what the surprise was, but she didn't want to miss the big reveal.

The surprise was covered with a tarp that was now dusted with snow, and she watched as Mr. Grinch explained that they couldn't put it anywhere else since they didn't have a garage. And as he pulled the tarp away to reveal it, Cindy Lou's heart melted as she saw her mother's face light up like a Christmas tree.  
It was a brand new, custom-built snowmobile built by him (and Cindy Lou) just for her.

"Since I noticed that you didn't have a car of your own, and you were having to rely on the bus schedule. This way you can save time," she heard Mr. Grinch say, but Cindy Lou wasn't sure that what he was saying was sinking in through her mother's pure, unexpected joy.  
She honestly thought she might cry watching her mother's gaze switch from Mr. Grinch to the gorgeous machine. She inched her way closer to it and ran her fingers over its smooth, metallic surface.

"This is- I mean, this is too much. I just can't believe-" her half finished sentences came out as quick little gasps, puffing out with her breaths in the cold night air. "I mean, the machines for the house were one thing but, this-"

She turned back to Mr. Grinch, and before Cindy Lou knew what was happening, her mother wrapped him in a tight, sincere hug.  
"Thank you," she saw Donna mouth but the words were too soft for Cindy Lou to hear.

Mr. Grinch looked taken aback by this sudden embrace, but he slowly returned it with a very strange smile on his face.

Her own smile spread across Cindy Lou's face as she watched the two of them embracing, the snow softly falling on them as it took a little longer than was necessary to part.

She felt like she might let out a squeal at the sight of them, for there was definitely something out there more exciting in her eyes than the snowmobile. Something she wholeheartedly approved of. She simply had to hear more and could not go to bed until she did.

When the hug finally ended she saw Donna give a shiver and quickly scrambled back to the stairway to keep from being spotted.

Cindy Lou heard a few more breathy words of thanks from her mother as Mr. Grinch waved them away. Once she was back on the landing they appeared in the hall, close but not quite at the door yet. It might have been her imagination, but it seemed like they were stalling.

"Well, again, I can't thank you enough. For everything. I don't want to assume, but can I expect you again tomorrow?"

"Actually, I was somehow roped into promising to take Cindy Lou and the twins sledding tomorrow. So I'll be here if you need someone to watch them again."

"Be careful, I just might end up depending on you too much," she joked, but Cindy Lou wasn't sure it had landed the right way. "If there's ever anything I can do for you, Grinch-" Then Cindy Lou saw something spark in her eyes.

"You know, why don't I help you a little with that, the integrating back into society that you mentioned? What are you doing New Year's Eve? Bricklebaum has a small get-together to count down to the new year. I've not been able to go before, but it wouldn't be much bigger than our Christmas dinner."

Cindy Lou could feel her mother's enthusiasm emanating all the way from where she still hid. Her mother was eager at this idea of hers, more eager than Cindy Lou had seen her be about much else. It put a sparkle in her eyes that Cindy Lou couldn't quite place, but she knew it must be a good thing.

She wasn't entirely sure that Mr. Grinch was catching these vibes, because all that seemed to come out of his mouth at that moment was some weird waffling accompanied by a few 'oh's and 'I don't knows'.

She watched the lights in her mother's eyes brighten as she stepped even closer to Mr. Grinch, taking his hand in hers.

"Please, let me do this for you. You'd be helping me out again too, you know. Do you know how hard it is for me to get together with other adults in a casual, non-work setting? Please come with me."

Cindy Lou was watching intently now, the air between the two of them had shifted from awkward to something else, something promising to the young Who girl's eyes.

"With you?" Mr. Grinch sputtered.

"If that's not a deal breaker," her mother replied, her smile fading slightly as the question arose.

"Oh, no no no, that's not it," he said, itching that spot on his neck again. "I think I'd enjoy that. Very much, in fact. "

"Great," she said, finally letting go of his hand. "It won't be terribly formal, but if you want to dress up you can."

Another awkward beat as they smiled at each other, and Cindy Lou waited expectantly for something else to happen. But when something finally did, she was disappointed.

She watched as her mother merely opened the door for Mr. Grinch, thanked him again, and bayed him goodnight.

She found that extremely anticlimactic as she swiftly and quietly took the stairs two at a time. But there was definitely something promising going on there between her mother and Mr. Grinch, and Cindy Lou was going to do all she could to help see whatever it was set sail.


	2. Chapter 2

~Dec. 30~  
The distance from his home atop Mt. Crumpit to the Whos' home on Whistling Who Lane was a good hour to hour and a half walk for The Grinch, but he had made the trek so often in the last few days that it didn't bother him half as much as coming into town used to. He pondered as he walked about how much of it was his new outlook on life and how much of it was his new daily destination.  
It wasn't only his wanting to repay the family's kindness, or even as a way of starting to pay back the town for stealing (and then returning) Christmas. The town mostly seemed to forgive him, and what was more important to him, Cindy Lou's family forgave him. No, it wasn't those things entirely that kept him coming back to the small house full of chaos and warmth. In just the last few days he had begun to feel needed, like he was a part of something. He didn't want to start assuming things, but just the feeling that he might be filling a void for the family had begun to fill a void of his own. One he'd only recently begun to admit to himself that he had.  
Cindy Lou was as bright and inventive as she was kind. She had jumped at the chance to help him with some of the gadgets he'd installed in the Who's home. It had been her idea to fix up their old refrigerator to dispense drinks and her extra touch to make their surprise snowmobile for her mother pink.  
Her twin brothers Buster and Bean could even be clever at times, when one wasn't trying to eat the other's hair or pick the other's nose. He didn't have much experience with babies but he had to admit they were endearing (and manageable with Cindy Lou's help).  
Then there was their mother, Ms. Who-or Donna. It wasn't that difficult to remember to use her first name in his head, for ever since the previous night when he'd revealed his latest creation to help ease their lives and she had not only hugged him, but actually _invited him_ out with her, her name hadn't been far from his mind.  
But saying her name out loud was where things might get harder. There was something about the informality of it that carried much more weight to him than was probably warranted. There was just something in her face, in the warmth of her smile that made him over-think nearly every move he made in her presence.  
As he approached the house, he heard the distinct cry of Buster – or was it Bean? - even from the front yard as the toddler was evidently being forced to do something he really didn't want to do.  
Just as he was knocking on the door, it swung open to reveal Cindy Lou, a huge grin on her face and wearing her puffiest snow jacket.  
"Hi Mr. Grinch," she greeted him, leaving the door for him to close as she went back to the task she had apparently been up to before he had arrived.  
"Quit squirming, Bean," she said to her little brother as Bean cried, unable to lower his arms from all the winter weather gear his sister had put on him. Buster was not fairing much better, but he was at least pacified for the moment as he had wrenched off his earmuffs and was chewing on them.  
"I've got them all ready," she told Grinch as he looked down at the three of them questioningly. "Mom wanted to make sure they were nice and snug when we go out."  
"I said nice and snug, not to smother them in a cocoon of coats," he heard her voice from the stairs, and turned to see Donna putting on her coat over her scrubs and smiling slightly amused at her daughter.  
"Just being a concerned big sister, Mom," Cindy Lou said as Donna walked past Grinch to give her a kiss on the head, and two more for the boys.  
"And I appreciate it," Donna answered, and then turned to Grinch. As she had passed him he had caught the scent of something flowery, and as she smiled in his direction he couldn't help but notice there was something a bit different bout her today. It may have just been his imagination, but she seemed brighter somehow. As f there was more color to her. He didn't comment on it, but it really wasn't a bad thing. It looked the exact opposite of bad, in fact.  
"I'm doing one of my friend a favor and taking her shift on top of mine, so I should be back pretty late. If you wouldn't mind staying a little longer than last night?"  
"I'll stay as long as you need me," he answered, trying to make his reply sound nonchalant.  
"Oh, thank you," she said, clearly relieved. "And you're free to sleep on the couch if you need."  
"Thank you, M- Donna."  
"Now are you absolutely sure I can't-" she started to fiddle with her purse, but when he caught her gaze she faltered as he shook his head.  
There had only been one conversation about payment for his help. After the first few tasks Donna had approached him, checkbook in hand. Grinch was very clear that he did not want any sort of compensation whatsoever. He was doing it out of the goodness of his now-extra large heart.  
Donna blinked, tilted her head with a smile, and then returned her purse back to her side.  
"Alright. I think that's everything then. Have a great day with them."  
"You too," Grinch replied, and then backtracked to correct himself. "I mean, you also have one. A good day, that is."  
Donna sighed. "I'll try my best."  
She then moved to one side on her way to leave, but Grinch had at that same moment tried to move out of her way in that same direction. They then over-corrected and both moved to the other side for one another, still leaving them in each other's way. What followed was an awkward dance of going back and forth which eventually led Donna to the door and Grinch back on the other side.  
She laughed a little, her hand on the doorknob, and gave him one last smile an a small wave as she went out into the frigid morning.  
It was only after Cindy Lou cleared her throat that Grinch reallized the distinct lack of crying from the twins. And the fact that he had been staring at the door for probably longer than he should have.  
"Well, we better get going. Groopert doesn't have long today. It's his dad's birthday and they have a whole thing planned."  
"Is Groopert coming along with us?"  
"Not exactly," she answered. "We gotta get to the clubhouse asap."  
"I thought you said you wanted to go sledding?" he asked.  
"Change of plans, Mr. Grinch. We're meeting Groopert at my clubhouse."  
Slightly confused but willing to accommodate, Grinch followed behind Cindy Lou as she pulled her wagon full of brothers into the snow.

`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`

Although it was roomier than it looked from the outside, it was still a tight fit to accommodate two children, two babies, and a full grown Grinch into Cindy Lou's tree house. Cindy Lou already had a playpen set up for the boys, but that took up most of the floorspace, leaving Grinch, Groopert, and Cindy Lou crammed into one corner with her drawing board.  
"Okay, so you're both probably wondering why I've called you here," Cindy Lou began what felt like a prepared presentation. "Groopert, as my best friend I need you here as a sounding board, and also to help me get a boy's perspective."  
She then turned to Grinch. "Mr. Grinch, you're here because I want to help you make things go as smoothy as possible on your date with my mom tomorrow night."  
She folded one sheet over on the board to reveal a crayon drawing of himself and Donna, or possibly an avocado and a purple lamp. A big, red heart was drawn to the right of them and a question mark next to it.  
They both blinked at her, slight confusion on Grinch's face, slight disgust on Groopert's.  
"Ewww, he's doing on a date with your mom?" Groopert said, pointing at Grinch. "Sorry, no offense, but- ew," he added. "And you're okay with this, Cindy Lou?"  
"I'll admit, it is a bit weird," Cindy Lou said. "Okay... pretty weird. But Groopert, you haven't seen what I saw. You haven't seen them together, and how happy Mom is when he's around."  
"And you can glean that from less than a week of interactions?" he asked.  
"I may be a kid, but I still notice stuff, she answered. "Do you know what my mom was doing before you got to our house this morning?"  
Grinch shook his head.  
"She was humming. And smiling. On a double-shift day. She was even wearing lipstick today. And she _never_ puts on makeup for work."  
"That- I mean, all that isn't necessarily because of me," he said, not wanting to admit that he had noticed how nice she looked that morning.  
"Oh yeah?" she smirked. "Then why'd she put it on right before you got there?"  
Cindy Lou as giving him a knowing look that was making him uncomfortable. It was almost as if she could read his mind.  
He folded his arms and turned his gaze from her, blocking out the idea. "You shouldn't jump to conclusions." Though as he said it out loud, Grinch wasn't sure he was only talking Cindy Lou.  
Sure, he enjoyed her company and truly loved making her smile, but that really mean anything? Could it even be possible, that she like him in spite of his obvious flaws?  
Now the young girl was smiling at him in a way that suggested she really could read his mind.  
"I knew it, you do like her!"  
"Now, now, hold on a minute," he raised his hands to halt her thinking. "Just because I think about her a lot, and look forward to seeing her every day, and maybe she might have tried to look nicer when she saw me doesn't mean there is anything going on between Don- your mom and me."  
There was a pause as Grinch frowned at the picture she'd drawn, but when Cindy Lou caught his eye again, her face was no longer conspiratorial, but understanding.  
"I know you're scared, Mr. Grinch. You've been alone for so long, it's probably weird and scary to think about getting out there and liking somebody."  
She took his green hand in both her tiny mittened ones.  
"But you're doing way more than I could have expected when I wanted to ask Santa to help her. You're not just making things easier, you're making her _happy."_  
He honestly didn't know what to think. He'd never been in this type of situation before. What he did know was that not only was Cindy Lou okay with him possibly pursuing her mother, but she was willing to help him out with it.  
Whether or not he thought he was going to be able to succeed at the pursuit, he had to at least let the girl try.  
He nodded,"Okay, if you really think this will work." and a smile spread across her face.  
"I know it will! Remember, she already likes you. If she starts playing with her hair, like if she keeps putting it behind her ear, that's definitely a good sign."  
Cindy Lou faltered a bit, pausing midway through her advice to look back down at the floor thoughtfully.  
"Mom's been through a lot this last year, and I think she's afraid of making things even harder. But she does like you. She's just a little... scared, I guess."  
Donna wasn't the only one, Grinch thought.  
He could tell she was struggling with her words, holding something back. Though she was bright for her age, there were moments when her lack of life experience exposed itself. He wasn't sure if it was inexperience at articulating complex things or a genuine promise of silence that held her back, but he tried to respect it in any case.  
They drilled him for a while on what they considered proper date etiquette, but it was clear to Grinch that the children were still children, and were so approaching things from a child's perspective.  
"So, what exactly do adults do at parties?" Cindy Lou asked.  
Groopert raised his hand."Ooh, ooh, I know! They put all their keys in a bowl."  
Cindy Lou blinked. "Why would they do that?" she wondered, looking over to Grinch.  
Grinch - who himself had very little experience with parties – at the very least knew what Groopert was referring to (and that also told him more than he needed to know about the boy's parents).  
But before Grinch could sway away from this not-child-friendly subject, Cindy Lou let out an 'oh' of realization.  
"Wait, I get it. Adults drink alcohol, so they don't wanna drive home drunk, so they all put their keys in the bowl for safe keeping and everybody spends the night."  
"Yeah, that makes sense," Groopert nodded.  
Grinch nodded along with them, too. Thankful that they came to their own conclusion.  
"But you know, I don't plan on drinking, and in any case I'm pretty sure we can walk to the party, so I don't think any keys are necessary" Grinch said.  
"Okay, so what else do adults do, then?"  
"Dance?" Groopert said in almost a question.  
"There we go, now that's romantic!" she said. "Mr. Grinch, do you know how to dance?"

"Not really," he replied. He honestly could not think of a time when he would have had the opportunity.

"That's okay, that's why we're here," said Cindy Lou, pulling Groopert up from his seat and grasping his hands tightly.

"Alright, so there's not much room to move around in here, but I think I know the basics of how to stand. You put your hands here," she moved Groopert's hands to her midsection. Even though neither of them could feel anything most likely what with her puffy coat and his gloves, the boy's face still looked warmer.

Cindy Lou did not seem to notice her dance partner's nervousness. "Then I – or my mom in your case – put hands here. "She lifted her hands to Groopert's shoulders. The boy looked like he might be sweating now, eyes wide as she continued to instruct.

"Then you just sorta sway back and forth. It's pretty easy." She demonstrated by leading Groopert in leaning from one foot to the other.

Grinch thought that surely it must be more complicated than that. But it did look like something he could handle if that was indeed all there was to it.

When Cindy Lou released him, Groopert sank back into his seat with a sigh of relief. Still none of this was caught by her. Her attention was still focused on aiding him.

"Now how about what you're going to wear?"

"What's wrong with what I'm wearing now?" he asked, gesturing to his fur-colored ensemble.

"Uhh, to be honest, Mr. Grinch, most folks around town just thought you didn't wear clothes." she answered. "I guess nobody has ever gotten close enough or paid attention enough to notice the seams."

What, so the entirety of Whoville just quietly thought of him as a casual nudist? If that was the case, they must be accepting of almost anything.

He shook himself at the realization. "Look, I live on my own, I tend to avoid whoman contact, so I dress for comfort. I shed my fur, then I sew it back into clothes. Keeps things simple."

Cindy Lou paused a moment before speaking again. "Yeah... you might wanna at least try a nice shirt or something."

"Like something made from someone else's fur?" asked Groopert.

"Or, ya know, something _not_ made of fur from anybody."

"Well, I don't have anything like that. I very rarely have a need for much more than a scarf or a tie."  
"Can we maybe buy you some clothes?"  
"With what money?" Grinch said questioningly, pulling out the insides of his pockets fro emphasis. "I hardly ever have enough to cover groceries and I dumpster dive for anything else I need."  
"And I only get five dollars a week for allowance," Cindy Lou said. "Groopert, how about you?"  
"I'm tapped out. You get your allowance every week? I only get ten for the whole month."  
"That doesn't leave us with a lot of options," she said. "I guess we might need another adult to help us out? Mr. Grinch, do you have any other friends besides us?"  
Grinch had to wrack his brain on that one.  
"And besides Max," she added, reading his mind again.  
"Uh... Bricklebaum, I guess?" he answered, still unsure of how well of friends he'd call them.  
Cindy Lou brightened. "Great! Mr. Bricklebaum is perfect. The happiest who in Whoville is just right to help us make this date go awesomely."

`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`  
Bricklebaum was – naturally – delighted to offer up any kind of help he could when the five of them appeared at his door. He was completely unfazed by their sudden appearance and welcomed them into his house as if it had been pre-planned.  
He sat them all down in the living room and soon returned with two large slices of chocolate-frosted cake. He laid them down carefully on the coffee table and all four of the children eyed them hungrily. Bricklebaum gave a laugh and handed both Cindy Lou and Groopert forks and took a knife to cut up smaller pieces for Buster and Bean.  
"So, I hear somebody has finally decided to come to one of my little get-togethers," he said as the children settled into the comfy couches in Bricklebaum's living room.  
"You know I've sent you invitations to all my holiday parties in the past, but they must've gotten lost in the mail."  
"Hehe, yeah...must have," Grinch said with a nervous chuckle. He had indeed received those invitations, and most of them had been tossed away into the depths of the caverns he lived in. He didn't exactly want to reveal that bit of information.  
"We're trying to help him figure out what he should do on his date with my mom. We figured you could help with that." Cindy Lou said matter-of-factly. "And I think maybe he needs something to wear."  
"Oh, say no more!" Bricklebaum answered jovially. "You kids just sit here and have some cake, and I'll take ol' Grinchy to my room and we'll fix him up."  
Bricklebaum then grabbed Grinch by the shoulders and started leading him out of the room and towards his bedroom. The kids smiled and waved with their forks in the air as they munched their cake.  
"But, I don't understand, why are you helping me?" Grinch asked. "You don't even know exactly what we're going to need from you."  
"Don't need to know. You need help, and you're my neighbor. Neighbors help neighbors you know, buddy."  
As they entered Bricklebaum's small bedroom, he noticed that the room wasn't so dissimilar from his own. Despite his friendly nature, he saw that the who didn't have very much in the way of personal items in his room. Few knick knacks and not one single family picture. Come to think of it, Grinch hadn't seen a picture in his house at all that didn't look older than possibly ten to fifteen years.  
He watched the who as he set to his work, walking into his closet and reappearing with several clothing options.  
"Now I think these might work. They're from my slimmer days, so they should be good enough to fit ya."  
He handed Grinch an outfit to try on, and as it was pushed into his hands he stared down at it warily. He took a moment to take in the oddness of this situation, and the oddness that was their entire history of interactions.  
"Let me ask you something, Bricklebaum. You've always been nice to me, though I never was nice to you for all those years. Why not just give up on me?"  
"I just told you, you're my neighbor," Bricklebaum replied. "Plus... I suppose I saw us a kindred spirits."  
"Kindred- how?" he nearly scoffed, but stopped himself.  
"You know, both of us livin' on the outskirts of town, alone and isolated with just our dogs for company."  
Grinch took a moment to contemplate this. That was true about the both of them.  
"I understand you better than you think, Mr. Grinch. We both like our privacy. The only difference between us is that I wasn't afraid to let all those nice whos in, or to accept their offers of friendship when they gave them."  
"But it looks like you're really opening up to the whos now... or one who in particular," he ribbed Grinch as he passed on his way back to the closet. "I gotta say, Grinchy, it just warms my heart to see you putting yourself out there like this, and I'm pleased as punch to be able to help where I can."  
It turned out that the clothes from Bricklebaum's 'slimmer days' were still a bit baggy on Grinch. They went through several festive sweaters, including one that depicted Santa fighting a shark (which even with his new-found Christmas spirit, Grinch still vetoed immediately). All the while his friend spouted out advice to Grinch as he tried on variously-colored sweaters and vests.  
"Just be yourself, that's the key thing to remember," then Bricklebaum added, "...maybe your more confident, less grumpy self."  
"The party won't be too big of a thing. If you're nervous you can always talk to me and I can introduce you around."  
It was true that Grinch was a little uneasy thinking about a room full of whos he either barely knew or didn't know at all. But what was of more concern was spending the entire evening with Donna. What would they talk about, and what should he do or say if they didn't find something to talk about?  
They eventually settled on the least loud sweater vest (a solid but still vibrant shade of pink) with a matching tie.  
"There ya go, now don't you look presentable?" Bricklebaum said, beaming next to Grinch as Grinch looked at himself in the mirror.  
He did look pretty good, if he did say so himself. That bolstered his confidence ever so slightly. If only he could somehow shake this awkward, nervous expression whenever he thought about the coming night, then he thought he would be truly ready.  
But, they still had another day before the party. That was plenty of time. 


End file.
